FanDuel sports book at the Meadowlands Racetrack in New Jersey took a bit of a trouncing along with the Alabama Crimson Tide which lost the NCAA national title game 44 to 16 to the Clemson Tigers.
Fanduel announced in November that it would pay out on bets on Alabama to win the title.
“It has been a dominant season for the Crimson Tide and our traders have seen enough,” the company said in the November statement. “It’s a way to reward our customers for betting on Alabama when the odds were really hard to make any money doing it.”
FanDuel reportedly paid out about $400,000 on those bets even though Alabama had yet to win a spot in the title game.
Along with the payouts, FanDuel had to pay out bets on Clemson, whose win was widely reported to have cost most sports books.
“We made history in November when we paid out customers early on Alabama winning the National Championship,” FanDuel said in a press statement. “Even though Alabama didn’t win, we have no regrets and are excited to make similar bold moves to prove there are more ways to win on the FanDuel Sportsbook. Congratulations to Clemson and to our customers who got paid out early. You’re the real winners today.”
Overall, Clemson’s upset was reported as a solid win for the betting public, according to analysts. The games 60 points passed the over/under of 57.5 points. College football betting consensus data at Sportsbook Review report that 55.7 percent of bets had come in on the over.
Also, Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa announced it will begin construction of a new $11 million sports book that will integrate a bar experience with sports wagering.
“Since Borgata arrived in the Atlantic City market more than 15 years ago, we have maintained a steadfast dedication to property growth and development, with our new concept exemplifying this objective,” said Marcus Glover, president and chief operating officer for Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa. “We are proud to have been at the forefront of legalized sports betting in New Jersey and look forward to advancing our product with an innovative gaming and entertainment experience for our guests to enjoy.”
Borgata was the first Atlantic City casino to open a temporary sports book utilizing space in its race book. It also has an online sports book though the playMGM NJ Sports mobile sports-betting app.
Also, Cherry Hill Towne Center Partners LLC is asking a court to allow it to open sports betting at the site of the former Garden State park racetrack even as a lawsuit to allow the sports book to open plays out.
New Jersey allows sports books at racetracks, including the closed Garden State track. However, the former racetrack’s operator, GS Park Racing, says a restrictive covenant at the property gives it the sole right to offer gambling at the former track.
Towne Center has sued to allow it to open a sportsbook in a commercial area later built on the site of the former track saying the covenant cannot be enforced and does not apply to sports betting.
No ruling on the motion has been announced.
Finally, DraftKings continues to roll out online slots and casino games at its New Jersey online site. The site now offers two slots games, video poker and roulette.
“DraftKings is building a true one-stop destination for skin-in-the-game American sports fans. This is an early preview of our larger strategy to roll out iGaming products in early 2019,” said Matt Kalish, DraftKings co-founder and Chief Revenue Officer. “As with our industry-leading DFS and Sportsbook products, customers can expect to see new product innovation, seamless integration with the full DraftKings platform, and amazing gameplay experience.”
